Several Democratic California gubernatorial candidates criticized Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom Wednesday night for not traveling personally to Stockton following the mass shooting that killed three children and one adult.
A massacre occurred at a children's birthday party Saturday night in Stockton, killing two 8-year-old girls, a 14-year-old boy and a 21-year-old man, and injuring others. Despite tragedy and media attention, Newsom did not go to the scene.
When asked by KCRA Political Director Ashley Zavala about the governor's decision, three Democratic gubernatorial candidates and one Republican criticized Newsom's absence.
“I believe the governor, he should have gone to Stockton. I exchanged messages with the mayor of Stockton and she told me how terrible this is for her community, the fear of retaliation and what it would mean for her and her community. And this area in the Central Valley already feels like their fly-in country,” Democratic candidate Ian Calderon said.
“Nobody cares about us. You fly over us. You only come here during the campaign. They can't continue to feel like that. And they need to know that they can have a relationship with the governor and the state when something so tragic happens,” Calderon added.
Democratic candidate Antonio Villaraigosa also responded to Zavala's question, saying he “emerged” during his tenure as mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. (RELATED: Several mass shooters took psychiatric medications. RFK wants answers.)
“I'll tell you what I did when I was mayor. I always showed up. I showed up when a police officer got shot. I showed up when families lost loved ones,” Villaraigosa said. “In fact, when I was a councilman, I attended every single murder in the two years that I was a councilman in my district. When I was mayor, there were too many, but we brought them down to 1950 levels, as I said. But I think it's important to show up. And I'm not criticizing anyone. I don't know where he was. But I can tell you for myself, you show up.”
Law enforcement responds to the scene of a shooting on November 30, 2025 in Stockton, California. (Photo by Benjamin Fanjoy/Getty Images)
The third Democratic candidate, Betty Yee, stressed the importance of showing support for a community that has “lost loved ones and community members” and starting a conversation about why the incident happened. When Zavala asked Yi if she would have gone to the scene if she were governor, Yi immediately answered in the affirmative.
Newsom's office did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation's request for comment.
Riverside County Sheriff and Republican gubernatorial candidate Chad Bianco also criticized the governor, questioning why Newsom did not call for an end to the violence or demand accountability.
“Why doesn't the leader of the state say that this absolutely has to stop and that those responsible will be held accountable? As the governor of California, I will absolutely make sure that I am there. I will make sure that I am there for the families, and we will do everything we can to make sure that California is the safest state in the country,” Bianco said.
“This selfishness of our elected officials, that they only do what benefits themselves, and sometimes they don’t have the opportunity to sacrifice or sacrifice their own ambitions, their vacation, or their political speech that he was going to give in another part of the country because a community in California was suffering, that speaks volumes,” Bianco added.
According to authorities received reports of the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office shooting shortly before 18:00 and confirmation that 14 people were injured by gunfire and four were killed. By Tuesday, the four killed were confirmed to be 8-year-old Journey Rose, 8-year-old Maya Lupyan, 14-year-old Amari Peterson and 21-year-old Susano Archuleta, with the total number of those injured rising to 17. according to for CBS News.
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